A forgotten tomorrow
by midnightbat
Summary: Memories could be the most important things in life but like all good things, you won't truly appreciate it until it's gone. What if the person you care about most forgets you ever existed? A young bird will finally understand what lost really means and will learn that sometimes to forget is better than to remember. No slash. Rated T because I'm paranoid.
1. A Broken Bird

**Okay, just a quick little one shot I wrote in the dead of night. Dunno if I'll maybe continue this. Depends on the reviews I guess. Sorry for any mistakes what so ever and if the story line is a little confusing.**

**IMPORTANT : This is not in any way slash. Just brotherly fluff.**

**Disclaimer : If I owned this I wouldn't be posting this here.**

_Chapter 1 : A Broken Bird_

Silence. It's the only thing surrounding the manor. There were no sounds coming from the kitchen where the loyal butler usually resides. The usually blaring tv was silent. The normal loud laughter or the pitter patter of feet hitting the ground during a chase weren't heard. The inhabitants were nothing more than hollow creatures walking around with no hope.

Their youngest inhabitant, a young boy with ebony hair and eyes, was one of the most lifeless among all. He lived life simply as that. Hollow. As an empty lifeless shell, going through life simply because he must. Thinking about what once was and what could have or _should_have been. He remembered the times he once thought meaningless. The times he took granted for. The smiles he never appreciated, the laughs that he will never hear when he wake up the next day, the calmness that has guided him, the personality that dealt with all his rude comments. The forgotten relationship he once had and the elder brother he will never have again.

Now all he has left were those memories that were meaningless in the eyes of others. And in the eyes who he shared them with.

He laid on the couch, red eyed and pale form all those nights he would wake up screaming his name. But know that he will never respond to him the same way again.

They all say that it will get better. That he will _heal._ Wounds heal, scars are forever. This scar will last longer than any scar he ever held because it had cut through deeper than the others. It will remain because the blade that had inflicted it came from the hand of the person he loved and yet he will never recall ever even holding the sharp weapon.

None of them understood the pain. They each have their own scars but none as deep as this. They all have their own loss but none has ever came so close to it but know that it's still too far out of reach. He suffered loss before. He's no stranger when it comes to pain or abandonment but none of them can compare to what he's feeling now.

They all expect him to go up to him every day, acting like nothing had happened. At first he thought he could, it was the same person wasn't it? But as time passed, it became too unbearable. Looking into his eyes, yet knowing that he will never remember. Talking to him and yet knowing that it's like talking to a stranger. And doing it all again the day after.

Sometimes he wishes that it could happen to him. Just one hit. One hit. He could leave it all. He would be with him. He would forget. He thought about what if it had been him instead.

He remembered the moment everything stopped for him. He thought that he had made it out alive. That everything is alright. He didn't think about the building exploding. He didn't think to run or duck when he was about to be caught in the explosion. He didn't have time to react when a piece of debris went flying at him. He didn't have time to register his elder brother had saved his life. The only thing he knew was that in one instant he'd been saved and in another he's standing next to his dying sibling.

He didn't know when they reached the watchtower, or when the doctors started the operation. He didn't realize when his tears started falling over. He didn't know that the next time those blue eyes opened, he will be nothing more than a stranger to them. That those eyes will never hold the same love for him that they once did. That those times were lost forever.

At first he didn't have time to think about that. All he could think of was the comatosed body of the man who saved his life. He sat beside him all through that time, afraid that he might lose him should he leave. After a few weeks of waiting, his eyes finally fluttered open but the daze in them did not clear. And they never will.

Now he's a man stuck in time. While the young boy will continue to live forward, the man will stay stuck on that day. He will have to talk to the man every day but know that the very next day, he wouldn't remember anything. His mind unable to recall anything after. Ever again.

It pains the young boy knowing that the man will never again be able to recall him. That he will have to live the rest of his days without the guidance of the one he calls his mentor.

Now all he has is regret. Regret that he didn't treasure those moments. Regret that he didn't spend more time with him when he had the chance. Regret that those times will never come again. Regret of all the times he insulted him. All the times he complained. All the precious moments he never appreciated. All the bad things he said. And regret that now, he will never get a chance to say the things left unsaid.

The boys eyes started getting wet. Tears are forming at its brim but he couldn't cry. He cried enough when he found out about his loss. He cried every night when he realized he's alone again. He sobbed every time he's not there with him.

_Just one more day._The boy thinks to himself, _Only one more day with him. Is that too much to ask? One day to tell him how much he means to me. About all the things I never said. One more day I can have with my big brother._

"Master Damian?" Said an elderly voice from the front door, breaking the young boy from his thought.

"What is it Pennyworth?" The boy said, his tone lacking its usual sharp edge.

"Master Bruce is here with the young master."

"Alright." The boy said jumping from his spot on the couch. He walked to the door and waited for his family.

A man wearing a black suit with a big build and black hair walked in the mansion first. Then young man walked in after him. He was wearing a simple blue T-shirt and jeans. He had a much more slender build and had black hair and blue eyes.

"Hello father." The boy greeted the larger man then he hesitantly turned to the younger man trying to hold back tears. "Hello, I'm Damian Wayne. It's a pleasure to meet you sir."

"Nice to meet you too." The young man said as he held out his hand.

Damian held back the urge to jump up at him as he shook the man's hand. He wanted to tell him how much he means to him but he couldn't. Not now. Not ever again. The words he never got to say to him floated around Damian's mind.

_I love you, Dick. Please don't leave me._

**Just to make things clear, in a mission Dick got injured and ended up getting short term memory loss. He doesn't remember anything about Damian and if he sleeps he won't remember anything before he wakes up. So even if he spends the day with Damian he'll forget him completely again the next day. So this isn't the first time Damian talked to Dick after the incident but Dick doesn't remember anything.**

**Yes I know I have stories I have to update but this has been stuck in my head for a while after a friend of mine told me a story she read. Yes I'll update my other stories as soon as I can.**

**Anyway, night! It's close to 3 am where I live and I am exhausted! Kinda explains why I sound like I'm in a bad mood in this A/N and the depressing story I guess. Please review!**

**~Midnight**


	2. Resounding Sorrows and Forgotten Pages

**Heya readers! I'm back! If you guys are loyal readers and subscribes to this story then you'd know that I said that I might leave this as a one shot. Well, after a few months of hiatus I decided to make this little story a multi chapter one. Not too long, maybe just 3 chapters long at the least. Thanks to you guys who read the last chap and who are hopefully still into this story enough to keep reading until the end. I apologize for my long period of hiatus but hopefully this chapter isn't so horrible that it would make you guys hate me even more. Any way, enjoy and I once again apologize for any mistakes done in this chap or if the story or style is in any way confusing.**

**Disclaimer : Thank your lucky stars that I don't own Batman or else your world would be filled with nothing but angst.**

_Chapter 2 : Resounding Sorrows and Forgotten Pages_

The moon's ever present light shone on the dark city below. The street lights were shining and the stores were still opened, but only a maniac would have the guts to walk through this city at night. Car horns blaring and occasional profanities were exchanged between drivers. The streets were filled with drunks who would probably be pronounced either dead or missing the next day. The alleys were filled with silent screams or blood and flashes of red and blue sirens would be seen all through the night.

Up on a tall tower, a figure sat watching the havoc of the city play out. The shadows hid him perfectly in the dark, the blue of his suit barely noticeable only to those with a trained eye. The night wind ruffled his ebony hair as his eyes remain trained on the chaos of his city, his body completely unaffected by the cold. A buzz was emitted from the device in his ear and his gloved hand reached up to answer the incoming call.

"Nightwing. Status update." Said a voice from the com-link.

"Hey bats." Nightwing replied. "Everything's good here on my end… Well as good as a normal night in Gotham would go."

"Alright. I'll meet you back at the cave." The link disconnected.

Nightwing sighed. _Stoic as always. _He thought. _Well, good to know that I at least still remember THAT._

He stood up from his perch on the tower and jumped from roof to roof. He ran through the night with expert grace from years of experience, some from even events his mind can't remember. As he landed on the roof of a dark building, a quick flash of red passed his vision. He stopped on the edge of the roof and looked down at the alley below it.

Grunts and groans were heard along with shouts of pain as a figure clad in red and black punched and kicked at the masked thugs. Nightwing watched surprised but strangely calm at the sight. He was surprised that Bats would let a little kid, fight alone in the streets of Gotham this late at night, especially in this part of town, but a part of him was calm because a part of him somehow knew of the child's skill.

Nightwing was even more shocked when he felt the feeling panic and protectiveness overcome him when a thug came up from behind him. He didn't know why he would feel protective of a child he just met but the panic quickly died down when the red figure turned and knocked the thug behind him unconscious. He silently jumped down and landed behind the clad child.

"I was wondering when you were going to show yourself."

Nightwing's masked eyes grew wide. "You knew I was there the whole time?"

"Yes." The figure said plainly and Nightwing couldn't help the feeling of pride fill him at the child's skill. Wait, pride?

"Do I know you from somewhere?" Nightwing asked.

"I don't know." The figure replied. "Do you?"

There was a hint of emotion that Nightwing couldn't exactly pin-point at the boy's voice. He didn't get the chance to ponder the question long though before the new Robin disappeared back into the night.

* * *

Dick Grayson woke up as the sun hit his face through the blinds. He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He looks around the familiar sight of his room in the manor, although it wasn't exactly as he remembered it. Some of his old posters were gone, but the _Flying Graysons_ poster was still hung even though it looked older, as though months or years have passed without him. The pictures on his nightstand were disorganized. Some frames placed in places he didn't remember putting and even some new pictures of people he couldn't recall meeting.

Just as he was about to jump out of bed and ask Alfred about the changes in his room, a thick book on his nightstand caught his attention. A note was stuck on the cover of the book and the words _Read now! _were written with his own hand writing. Deciding that no harm could come from reading, he picked up the book and read through the pages.

'_Your name is Richard John Grayson-Wayne. You were involved in an accident during a mission as Nightwing three years ago and now you have amnesia. You won't be able to remember anything a few years prior to the accident but you won't be able to remember anything that will happen after the accident either. In other words, when you sleep tonight, you won't remember anything you did or anyone you met during that day.'_

_That explains the changes in my room. _Dick thought to himself. He continued to read through the book. Every page of the book was filled with his own handwriting, explaining everything that happened ever since his 'accident' and some things that he forgot prior to it.

_Wow, I missed a lot of stuff. _He thought to himself again. He got to a page in the book and his eyes grew twice their sizes. There was a picture of a boy who practically looked like a younger version of Bruce and words below the photograph.

'_Name: Damian Wayne, newest Robin. Biological son of Bruce Wayne and Talia Al Ghul.'_

The pages after that were blank. Dick guessed that they were for him to write whatever important information or new people he met during that day. He sighed and fell back onto his bed.

_A new little brother huh? _He thought. _Wasn't expecting that… And did it have to be Talia of all people?! What was Bruce thinking?! And what happened to Selina? I was hoping that she could be the next Mrs. Bats... Okay, getting off topic there._

Dick sighed to himself and got out of bed, deciding that going down and maybe asking Bruce was better than wallowing around his own crazy theories. He took a quick shower and changed into a white shirt and jeans before making his way to the kitchen.

As always, Alfred had clearly out done himself for breakfast. The mouth watering scent filled the air even before Dick entered the room. Bruce was already seated at the table, his breakfast and a cup of coffee in front of him while he was reading his morning paper. Nothing new.

"Morning Alfie!" Dick yelled as he took a seat at the table.

"Good morning master Dick." Alfred says as he placed Dick's breakfast in front of him. "I'm glad to see that you are well." The hidden meaning behind those words was clear as sky to Dick.

"Yeah, I'm great Alf." Dick said before diving into his breakfast.

"Dick, if you don't slow down your going to choke." Bruce said, his eyes never leaving the paper.

"Sowwy Bwuss, achnechia wemembech?" Dick said through a mouthful of food.

"And swallow first." Bruce sighed. "I never thought that I'd be so grateful that Alfred knows the Heimlich."

Dick swallowed and grinned. "Sorry Bruce, amnesia remember? I seem to have forgotten how to eat slower." He said before resuming to stuff his face with the food.

A ghost of a smile made it to Bruce's face at his eldest son's old antics. _He could still laugh at a situation like this._

Breakfast went by normally and quietly, with Dick occasionally asking a few questions about his current life here and there, until a certain child walked into the room.

"Good morning Pennyworth." He greeted plainly. "Good morning father." The boy took a seat in front of Dick, keeping his eyes trained on the table.

"Good morning master Damian." Alfred said as he placed a plate of food in front of the boy.

Dick's head snapped up at the boy's name. So this was the boy in his book. Dick stared at Damian, looking at his every feature while the boy ate. After a while, Damian looked up and he locked gazes with Dick.

"Oh right." Bruce said, regret and slight sympathy etched in his voice. "Dick this is Damian, my son. He's been using the Robin mantle for a while now."

"I've heard." Dick replied, his eye still locked with the younger's. The look in his eyes was shocking to Dick. It was cold and empty, like he was staring into a dark void. In just one look, Dick could see pain, sadness, and lost. It hurt him to see that look in the child's but it confused him to why he felt like he just wanted to hold the child. To see an old light in those eyes that he knew was once there, even though he was sure that this was the first time they met.

"Good morning." Damian said, his voice emotionless, before going back to eating.

"Yeah." Dick replied. The atmosphere was quite and dense for a while, no one knowing what to say.

"Alright Dick," Bruce finally said, "I'm going to work and Alfred is going to the city so I need you to watch Damian for a while."

Damian's head snapped up to face his father, his voice empty but laced with slight pain as he said, "But father, I'm perfectly capable of…"

"No buts Damian," Bruce said, although his voice lacked its usual strictness, replaced by sadness instead. "Someone needs to watch you and Dick's the only one available."

Damian nodded dejectedly and stared back down towards his empty plate. Dick, not remembering anything, thought that Damian was simply upset that he wasn't allowed to stay home alone, like any other child his age. So like the good big brother he is, Dick put on a smile tried to comfort the young bird. "Cheer up kiddo, today's gonna be fun! At least you won't be alone right?"

"_Don't worry Damian, I'll be here. You won't be alone."_

Damian snapped his head up and stared straight back at Dick, the sudden flashback giving him the slightest ray of hope but Dick's eyes were just as clueless as before. Damian looked back down, his hope shattered.

"Excuse me, father." He said before hopping down his seat and exiting the room.

Dick looked curiously at his dad and asked. "Was it something I said?"

Bruce sighed and shook his head. "It's nothing Dick."

* * *

**(A/N : **_**Italics **_**here are flashbacks.)**

Damian sat on the couch in the main room of the manor, his knees pulled up to his chest. He watched the show playing on the TV in front of him with blank eyes, not really registering what was happening. The event from that morning still slightly shook him. It's not uncommon that Dick would occasionally do things or say things that would seem like the old Dick, but over the course of the years those moments never failed to arouse some kind of hope in Damian that his older brother could still come back but everyday that hope is shattered.

Damian was still mulling over his thoughts when he felt the couch tip slightly from pressure when Dick decided to sit next to him. They sat like that for a while, in silence. Dick, not knowing what to say to the unfamiliar child he just met, and Damian, just simply not trusting himself that he could look at the eyes of his brother without completely breaking down. In the end it was Dick who decided to break the silence.

"So umm… Are you really planning to just stay inside like this all day?"

"_You shouldn't stay inside all day you know Dami…"_

Damian flinched at the sudden voice and memory but answered nonetheless, trying to keep his voice from breaking. "Yes, I am actually."

"_Tt, there's not really anything else better to do around here Grayson."_

"But it's a really nice day out, where would the fun be if we just stayed inside all day?" Dick flashed one of his signature smiles.

"_Oh come on!" Dick said while dramatically flaying his arms around. "It's a beautiful day out there! There's plenty of fun things we can do in a mansion! Staying in here all day's no fun."_

At this point, Damian was on the verge of tears but he kept up his cold façade and continued staring blankly at the show playing on the screen, determined on not making any eye contact with his elder brother. Sensing the younger's resolve, Dick sighed and reached for the remote, turning off the TV.

"What was-" Damian tried to ask but was suddenly dragged by the wrist out the front door of the mansion.

"Sorry, but even if you're hell set on staying inside for the rest of your life," Dick said, pulling Damian through the mansion gardens. "There is no way I'm letting you miss out on a day like this!"

_Dick sighed and looked down at the young bird sitting on the couch before grabbing the boy by his torso and carrying him over his shoulder outside the door, said boy kicking and screaming all the way._

"_What the hell Grayson?!" Damian screamed._

"_Sorry little D, but it's high time I teach you a little something about the importance of fun." Dick said walking, no skipping with his rebel of a little brother in tow. "There is no way that you are going to lay around in doors on a day like this while I'm around!"_

Dick dragged the stone faced boy over to the basketball court, finally releasing his grip on his hand when they reached the center. The elder took a ball and passed it to the bird.

Damian caught the ball and stared stoically at his brother.

"_What is this Grayson?" Damian asked, eying the orange ball._

"_It's a basketball! We're gonna play a few rounds." Dick said with a smile, getting into position in front of the hoop._

"So, you know how to play?" Dick asked smiling, unaware of the younger's emotional battle.

"_What am I supposed to do with a ball?" Damian asked, glaring at the elder bird._

"Yeah." Damian answered silently, still with his eyes downcast.

_Dick gasped dramatically. "You mean you don't know how to play basketball?!" He yelled, frantically throwing his arms around. "How can a boy not know how to play the greatest game ever invented in the history of the world?!"_

"_One that was busy learning how to be an assassin rather than learning about trivial games." Damian said, still glaring._

"_Oh right," Dick said rather dumbly. "Well, it's like this."_

"Well come on then!" Dick said to Damian.

Damian started to dribble the ball, still purposely avoiding eye contact with his brother.

"_So that's how to play!" Dick said with a smile. "Now why don't we try a few rounds?"_

Damian ran towards the hoop, expertly moving away as Dick tried to take the ball.

"_Huh, that sounds like a rather useless game Grayson." Damian said, but started dribbling the ball nonetheless. "But I guess I could give it a try."_

Damian side-stepped, avoiding yet another attack from his elder brother, continuing his way over to the hoop.

_Damian glared at his elder brother, twirling the ball on his index finger._

"_Oh come on Damian, you'll get better at it." Dick said with a smile. "Why don't you try getting pass me again?"_

As Damian neared the hoop, Dick attempted yet another go at the ball but Damian quickly dodged, walking around Dick then finally jumped, aiming the ball at the hoop.

"_If your opponent tries to take the ball," Dick said, "Quickly walk around them, like when you're trying to avoid a punch during a fight. And use your wrist when you try to score, that way you'll get more support."_

Damian flexed his wrist and threw the ball with incredible precision, watching as it enters the hoop.

_Dick smiled as he watched Damian successfully score his first ball against him._

Damian stood there panting, staring at the rolling ball. Dick walked up to him with a wide smile.

"Oh my god! That was amazing Damian! You never told me you were such a pro at this!"

"_That was great Dami!" Dick said with a wide smile, "You're a complete natural at this!"_

"Seriously little D, you were amazing!"

Damian's head snapped up at the use of his old nickname. He looked at his brother with hope.

"Seriously where did you learn how to play like that?!" Dick said with a wide smile. "It looked like you've been playing forever! Who taught you?"

Damian's heart fell at the words but his face didn't show it, instead looked back down at the ground and mumbled a barely audible "No one" before running back to the mansion, ignoring his brother's cries.

"_See! I told you that you'd get better!" Dick said. "Playing with me so much definitely improved your skill!"_

Damian ran into the manor and sprinted right into his room, slamming the door behind him.

"_Tt, how can I not learn a few tricks with you pestering me to play almost every waking moment of my life." Damian said indignantly, but still couldn't hide the bright smile on his face._

Damian sat on the floor of his room, his back to the wall as past memories flooded his mind.

"_Hey! You have to admit that my incredible teaching skills have a role in this drastic improvement." Dick said with a proud smile._

_They both stood there on the court panting but with very distinctive smiles on their faces._

"_I suppose you teaching me did help my skills a little." Damian said, his eyes looking at anywhere but his brother. "Thank you, Dick."_

Damian finally lets his tears fall. He hugged his legs to his chest and sobbed in between his knees.

_Dick smiled at his little brother's comment, his eyes practically glowing with love he felt for his younger brother. "You're welcome little D."_

Damian's cries filled the room. It hurts. It hurts when his elder brother called him by the name he had long forgotten, only to not realize the true meaning behind it. It hurts when he smiled at Damian when he scored against him, not knowing that he was the reason he could. It hurts when his eyes shone with pride and amazement when he swiftly moved passed him, but didn't even remember that he was the person who taught him how.

But mostly, it hurts to know that those times would forever be lost to him and that he can never get them back.

Damian ignores the cries of his brother and the pounding at his door. Why should he care? It's not like Dick will suddenly remember everything. He knows that. But why does it still hurt so much when he says his name?

After a while, the pounding stopped and the shouts of his name died down. But Damian still remained on the floor, sobbing until his throat burned, crying for the brother he once had. For the relationship he never really appreciated but now lost. For all the times they spent that now lies as nothing more than meaningless pictures in the elder's eyes.

What hurts most is that he realizes that no matter what those memories won't come back. That no matter what he does, he'll always be nothing after the next day. That every morning he'll have to look into his brother's eyes, and know that he's nothing more than forgotten pages in his book of memories. And that every happy moment he spends with the person he loves most in this world, will ultimately bring him back to a world of resounding sorrow.

**Staying true to the tradition of this story, I wrote this chap once again at the brink of dusk till dawn. Yes, apparently I'm one of those writers. Again I apologize if it's confusing or just plain terrible but I would really appreciate if you would review. Once again, I'm sorry for the long hiatus to all my stories but I'm back now and would hopefully get future chapters out soon. To everyone here who are also reading my other fic '**_**follow me back home'**_**, keep calm because I plan to update that soon too. And I will also explain the reason for my long hiatus there so to those who are curious please go there. And for those who are not, I would really appreciate it if you would support that story too. (shameless advertising XD) Thank you to **_**Dextra2, TSRowenwood, Amitris, Cirruz The Night Elf, **_**and **_**READINGhearts17 **_**for reviewing. It really means a lot to me, and I hope that all 5 of you are still with me on this. Any way, if you have questions, comments, or anything please feel free to leave it in a review of DM me about it. See you guys next time :3**

**~Midnight**


End file.
